A question on packing a bike for moving.
 

What is the least amount they have to disassemble a bike to put it in a shipping box?
I am looking at a Norco Sasquatch and am getting better than a great deal on it.
I am moving a couple of hours away and don't have a bike rack.
I figure the easiest way to transport it is in a box.
The less I have to reassemble it the more I will like it.

It would be my L.B.S packing it in the same kind of box it came in.
I have a very bad back. It would be easier for me to slide a box in and
out of my station wagon

The size you are able to transport will determine how much needs to be disassembled.

You transporting it yourself on a truck or trailer?
Why box at all?

A mover with a van?
How big a box will they accept? You can get or make a box that requires no disassembly.

Shipping it?
The smaller you can make the box, the cheaper it will be. So the more you disassemble, the better.


Don't fear the wrench!

I don't think movers have ever disassembled or boxed my bikes while moving, I think they generally just wrap them in those moving blankets and put them in the van (hopefully on top of the pile).

You can always buy an inexpensive bike rack on craigs list or whatever you have up by you.

Sorry I didn't make it clear.
It would be my L.B.S packing it in the same kind of box it came in.
I have a very bad back. It would be easier for me to slide a box in and
out of my station wagon. I don't fear the wrench so much as am darn busy.
This is just the easiest way for me.

I removed the pedals and turned the bars 90 degrees and slid it in on top of everything else in my old panel truck to move across country. En route I refined the plan and hung it by coat hanger wire from the ceiling ribs and slept beneath the suspended bike and on top of the other stuff. Snug.

I frequently move one of my bikes by car to get to rides that are farther away. When taking the hatchback car I lift the rear wheel of the bike onto the top edge of the car bumper and then roll the bike backwards into the car while tilting it enough so the seat clears the roof. Once it's inside I lay the bike down on its side. Since mine is a small hatchback (Corolla wagon) I then tilt the front wheel so it's at 90 degrees and allows the hatch to close - with a bigger station wagon that wouldn't be necessary.

This involves lifting less weight and is much easier in general than it would be to get a box of the same weight into the car since I'm using the rear wheel to roll the bike. And it's easier to grab the bike by one of the frame tubes than to grab a big, bulky box that lacks handholds in the right places. With this method I'm never lifting more than half the weight of the bike at any time (about 10 - 15 lbs. for my bikes).

My LBS does arrval build ups and departure boxing ...

a Coast Guard Town. with a lot of summer bike tourist traffic.

It would be the same as when you pack your bicycle into a box to fly to a different location to cycle.

Wheels off, pedals off, handlebars turned.

Now that is what I was hoping to hear. :)

$$$ to pack and ship vs remove front wheel and put into station wagon. If its already assembled/why mess with it? Open brake-remove wheel. At destination, insert wheel. close calipers. To pack (and get it small enuff) wheels-handlebars/pedals/saddle...all off. dropouts reinforced-miles of bubblewrap. Usually $100 to ship and $50 for lbs to pack. Sounds like overkill to me. Sell it and buy another after move. You know you want a new one-lol

Here's how I just packed a bike to ship it clear across the country. $8 for pool noodles and $2 for a hundred 11" zip ties from your local dollar store... Took off pedals, removed seatpost and handlbars/stem. All fit in a used bike box.

https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...ff10cd4809.jpg
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...a843cbe4f3.jpg

This the about the minimum disassembly required to get a bike in the common 55"x30''x8" box. However, you can find larger boxes. I found a 56"x32"x 9" box for this trip, but I still needed to remove the seat and post to accommodate my 58 cm bike. I just packed 4 bikes for a trip we are starting on tomorrow. The box sizes varied, but I did have to remove the seats and seat posts on 3 of the bikes. The smallest bike, 42 cm frame, did not require removing it. I used foam pipe insulation for padding.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4405/...6dd18c08_c.jpg

I recommend a spacer at the drop outs (or closed ends) of the fork and rear triangle if shipping with the front and/or rear wheel(s) removed.

Why don't you ask the shop that is packing up the bike? And just ask them to do the least possible disassembly?

Hiring an actual professional, bonded, insured, inter-provincial/state moving company?





...

My local bike shop will pack up the bike, ship it to another remote bike shop, that bike shop will reassemble it - for $100. Not the cheapest but it is the easiest way to go.

Yep I agree
I just wanted to know by asking my online cycling buddies while my L.B.S. was closed.

On a separate note.
There is no way I could lift a bike onto the top rack of my station wagon.
But sliding a box on top is a cinch. I go to test ride the bike Thursday.
it is an absolute beauty. :)

Cool beans. :)

What you can't see in my pink pool noodle packaged bike is the PVC pipe spacers at both axle locations held by the wheelset quick-release skewers. You can < just barely > see the skewer nuts at the dropouts. The seat and seatpost are held inside the rear triangle, obscured by the rear wheel. I also used some scrap noodle bits on the crank arms, and on the bottom of the chainring. Handlebars are ziptied to the toptube, and wheels were also ziptied to the sides of the frame so they wouldn't shift around... That is a large 60cm touring bike frame. All fit in a 45x38x10" box!